Connect with us

Latest

MLB’s new automated strike zone has created a massive unintended consequence for hitters and pitchers

Published

on

The introduction of Major League Baseball’s automated balls and strikes challenge system was expected to change the sport in 2026. For the entire history of the game, players and managers had complained about missed calls at home plate, with arguments and on-field disagreements commonplace. 

And suddenly, for the first time ever, they could do something about it. 

If catchers, pitchers, or hitters believed an umpire missed a call, they were suddenly allowed to challenge it. Two challenges per game, with more if an individual challenge proves successful. 

Even in just the first month of the season, this new practice has heavily impacted the sport. Inning-ending calls have been overturned, giving hitters another opportunity that, in some cases, has led to game-changing home runs. Pitchers have benefited from catchers getting them out of innings by turning a ball into a strike with a well-timed challenge. 

But that’s all obvious. ABS though, has also created a completely unexpected change that’s significantly impacted both hitters and pitchers.

Walks have exploded under new ABS system

With the introduction of challenges, MLB had to essentially redefine the strike zone to ensure that the tracking system would consistently and accurately measure what actually is a strike or ball. As such, they created a new version of the zone that was based on a player’s specific characteristics.

According to the rule book, “The strike zone will be a two-dimensional rectangle that is set in the middle of home plate with the edges of the zone set to the width of home plate (17 inches) and the top and bottom adjusted based on each individual player’s height (53.5% of the batter’s height at the top and 27% at the bottom).” 

How does this differ from the previous definition? Ben Clemens at FanGraphs measured the change, relative to the 2025 regular season, and found that the zone has shrunk at the top of the zone and on the edges of the plate. 

How has this played out in practice?

TREVOR BAUER CALLS OUT MLB AFTER PETE ROSE REINSTATEMENT WHILE HE REMAINS OUT OF LEAGUE

Well, the new strike zone and the obvious embarrassment of having a call overturned has changed how umpires call balls and strikes. With few exceptions, it seems as though they’ve become more stingy with called strikes, and the data bears that out. 

The league-wide walk rate in 2025 was 8.4%, and from 2021 to 2025, it never went below 8.2% or above 8.7%. Thus far in 2026? The walk rate is up to a whopping 9.6%. That is, by far, the highest walk rate of any full season over the past decade.

ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW! 

Essentially, the league redefined the strike zone to make it a bit smaller than the zone previously used by umpires. Umpires, afraid of being overturned, or at least, more aware of the new zone and its limitations, have been calling fewer strikes. Hitters, no doubt instructed by their teams and aware of this new shift, have been taking more pitches. 

All these factors combined lead to more walks. A 1.2% increase year-over-year is massive in a sport as consistent as baseball.

What’s equally interesting though, is that while on base percentage league-wide is .322, the third-highest figure since 2016, because hitting has become so hard thanks to the increase in velocity and pitch development, batting averages are the lowest they’ve been over the last decade.  

So ABS changed the strike zone, making it smaller than in years past. Umpires adjusted, calling fewer strikes, hitters realized it and became more patient in the process, and now walks are the highest they’ve been in a decade. Now the question becomes, will pitchers adjust back and throw more strikes, even if it risks more hard contact. Just one of many changes brought in by MLB’s attempt to make the game better. 

Continue Reading

Latest

Artemis crew says they wanted to ‘connect with humanity,’ show what can be done when they put their mind to it

Published

on

The Artemis II crew, following their return to Earth after a historic 10-day lunar flyby, spoke with U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz, describing the mission as a “glorious” experience.

The crew — Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen — returned to Earth on April 10, splashing down off the coast of San Diego after their journey around the Moon during which they set a new record for the farthest distance traveled by humans in space, surpassing the mark set by Apollo 13 in 1970.

Waltz gifted the crew “MUNGA,” or “Make the U.N. Great Again,” hats, inspired by President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan.

The crew was asked by Waltz what they thought as they looked back at Earth from space.

ARTEMIS II PILOT VICTOR GLOVER PRAISES GOD AFTER RETURN, SAYS MISSION WAS ‘TOO BIG TO BE IN ONE BODY’

“As a crew, we wanted to go for all and by all,” Wiseman said at U.N. headquarters in New York. “And we wanted to set the stage for Artemis III. We wanted to get this space agency in this world ready for Artemis III and IV. But in the end, we really wanted to connect with humanity. We wanted humanity to just pause for a second and see that this world can still do something exceptionally well when they put their mind to it.”

Artemis III is expected to launch next year, and Artemis IV is targeted for the following year.

“You asked how it felt, and it wasn’t one feeling for the entire mission,” Glover told Waltz. “What we saw out the window was changing, and that is one of the unique things … I always felt the urge to just be grateful for what we were seeing, and to be grateful for what we were eventually going back to. And the other thing was just how blessed we are to have this.”

Koch said that when she looked back at Earth, the surrounding darkness made the planet feel “even more special than it’s ever been.”

“Instead of this absolute background that just exists everywhere for us, because that’s all we’ve had, it makes the lines that we redraw on it seem big and important,” she said. “You realize that actually, there’s nothing absolute or guaranteed about this, and that actually, there is such thing as a global scale. And this is the first time I’ve said that at the U.N., but the truth is that the global scale is our world. And what we do with it is our choice.”

Hansen described the experience of seeing the vastness of space and feeling both small as an individual and empowered by what humanity can accomplish together.

“It was like this weird thing where, like stars, some stars look closer in our galaxy than others. And it just kept catching my eye, and it just kept making me feel really tiny, really small as an individual. But then, at the same time, I was out there experiencing it, and it made me feel very powerful as a human race. What we can do together, the fact that we were out there and something that has been really heartwarming since we got back to Earth and started to see how many people stopped to watch the mission and resonate with it,” he said.

Glover also recalled the many emotions tied to the mission, including the “glorious moment” of returning to Earth.

ARTEMIS II ASTRONAUTS FACE TOILET TROUBLE AS THEY HEAD TOWARD THE MOON

During the visit to the U.N., NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman wanted to take a moment to appreciate how far they had come, noting that it was not long ago that Trump established the Artemis program that led to the Artemis II mission.

“In fact, in just 2020, President Trump established the Artemis Accords. Now, the initial framework was an agreement of principles between the United States and seven other like-minded countries on the responsible exploration of space,” he said.

The crew’s visit to the U.N. comes after they met with Trump at the White House on Wednesday. Trump had also spoken to the crew as they were orbiting the moon in early April.

Continue Reading

Latest

Fever star Caitlin Clark avoids serious injury after scary fall leads to early exit in preseason game

Published

on

Indiana Fever star guard Caitlin Clark exited Thursday night’s preseason game against the Dallas Wings after colliding with one of their players.  

Clark was seen hobbling on the court after taking a step-back three-point shot and landing on Wings star defender Alanna Smith’s foot in the third quarter of the matchup. Upon landing, Clark told reporters after the 95-80 loss that she hit her knee hard when she went down after the foul by Smith.  

Clark rolled over on the court and tried to walk it off as she went toward the Fever bench. Officials ended up reviewing the play and gave Smith, the reigning co-Defensive Player of the Year in the WNBA, a Flagrant 1 foul for not giving Clark a safe amount of room to land after shooting.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Clark exited the game with fewer than eight minutes left in the third quarter.

She finished with a team-high 21 points despite missing most of the second half. Clark hit two of her three attempted three-pointers, while knocking down 11 of 13 from the free throw line. She also had two rebounds, four assists and one steal in the contest.

Being this was a preseason matchup, Fever fans were holding their collective breath watching Clark in the moment, especially considering the tumultuous season she had in 2025.

CAITLIN CLARK RETURNS TO WNBA COMPETITION AFTER 2025 INJURY IN FEVER PRESEASON GAME

Clark played just 13 games in her sophomore campaign, far from what she had hoped after winning WNBA Rookie of the Year and setting the single-season assists record in 2024.

But it appeared Clark avoided a serious injury that could’ve come in that situation. Being in someone’s landing zone after a shot can lead to severe injuries, especially ankles turning.

Fever head coach Stephanie White didn’t seem to want to push Clark, and sat her the rest of the way.

The Fever still have one more preseason game remaining on the schedule, as they face the Nigerian national team on Saturday. Then, it’s regular-season basketball, with the Fever’s first game that counts on the record against these same Wings in Dallas on May 9.

The Wings are an intriguing team to watch, with Azzi Fudd, the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s WNBA Draft, reuniting with fellow UConn teammate Paige Bueckers to begin her pro journey. Bueckers led the Wings with 20 points on Thursday night, while Fudd finished with four points.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Continue Reading

Latest

Former Minnesota Investigator: State Government ‘Harassed, Bullied’ Department in Alleged Coverup of Child Care Fraud Allegations

Published

on

An ex-Minnesota state trooper and former investigator in the Office of Inspector General for Minnesota’s Department of Human Services testified this week that state officials tried to get him to delete findings from a child care fraud report and later tried to shut down his department after “members of our unit were harassed and bullied by DHS officials.”

The post Former Minnesota Investigator: State Government ‘Harassed, Bullied’ Department in Alleged Coverup of Child Care Fraud Allegations appeared first on Breitbart.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2026 Political Signal